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June 28, 2013

Secretary of State Beth Chapman Releases Photo Voter ID Plan

Today Secretary
of State Beth Chapman released the 2014 plan for implementation of photo voter
ID in the form of administrative rules.

The plan states
that a person without any acceptable form of photo voter ID can receive a free
ID by going to the Department of Public Safety in their county and receiving a
free non-drivers identification card or by going to their county courthouse
Board of Registrars office and receiving a free photo voter ID there. A voter can also visit the Secretary of
State’s office in the State Capitol to receive a free photo voter ID.

The law
states that you do not need to apply for a free photo voter ID card if you
already possess a valid Alabama driver’s license or valid non-drivers ID card;
a valid ID or photo employee card issued by a branch, department or agency of
the State of Alabama, any other state, or the United States; a valid US
passport; a student ID; a US military ID – both which contain a photo; and also
a valid tribal ID card.

Also included
in the plan is a form that a voter must fill out in order to receive a free photo
voter ID and also a form that must be signed for the non-drivers ID card.A request for proposal is currently being finalized
for a vendor with mobile capabilities to produce the free photo voter IDs in
the courthouses and remote locations.Once that vendor is selected, that full process will be announced and
the process advertised.

The
administrative rules will go through a comment period and comments can be
accepted for a time period of thirty five days beginning on July 31st. The full
administrative rules as filed can be found by following the link placed on the
website for the Secretary of State at www.sos.alabama.gov.

“After the
comment period is over and the vendor has been announced, there will be a major
media blitz conducted by this office to explain the process and ensure that
everyone who needs an ID gets a free one in order to vote,” Chapman said.

“By having a multi-pronged
approach, we will provide adequate places where citizens can receive a free photo
voter ID.We would like for people to remember
that you only need to obtain this free ID if you do not currently have a proper
form of ID,” Chapman said.

The State of
Georgia, which has approximately 2 million more voters than the state of
Alabama, implemented their photo voter ID system in 2006.In the first year, they issued 2,200 photo
voter ID cards and the highest number so
far was issued in 2008 at 12,332.In
2012 4,490 cards were issued.

“This is something that the legislature passed
that I have been in favor of for a long time.I believe the citizens of Alabama and their vote will be better protected
under this new law,” Chapman said.